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Re: strncpy and 'n'

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On 02/21/2012 04:46 PM, Joe keane wrote:
> In article <lnboouef7m.fsf@nuthaus.mib.org>,
> Keith Thompson  <kst-u@mib.org> wrote:
>> If it had been defined something like this:
>>
>>    char *better_strncpy(char *dest, const char *src, size_t n) {
>>        dest[0] = '\0';
>>        return strncat(dest, src, n);
>>    }
>>
>> then it would be reasonable to call it a "safer" version of strcpy.
> 
> Well there you go.  You pretty much solved your complaint.

I don't see how the ability to define such a function changes any of the
issues he complained about - there's still a function named strncpy() in
standard library, and it's name still creates well-justified but false
expectations in newbies about what it might do. Careful reading of the
standard or good documentation  will correct those mistaken expectations
- but that shouldn't have been necessary.

I'm not saying that newbies shouldn't need to read the documentation, or
that the standard should be written so that reading it is unnecessary.
I'm merely saying that good naming conventions can make it easier to
guess what the functions do, and easier to remember what they do once
you have learned what it is. Either the behavior should have matched
those expectations, or the name should have been changed to make them
not well-justified.

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Thread

strncpy and 'n' nroberts <roberts.noah@gmail.com> - 2012-02-16 09:05 -0800
  Re: strncpy and 'n' Anders Wegge Keller <wegge@wegge.dk> - 2012-02-16 18:57 +0100
    Re: strncpy and 'n' "A. K." <akk@nospam.org> - 2012-02-16 19:27 +0100
      Re: strncpy and 'n' Anders Wegge Keller <wegge@wegge.dk> - 2012-02-16 19:34 +0100
        Re: strncpy and 'n' "A. K." <akk@nospam.org> - 2012-02-16 20:58 +0100
  Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-16 10:01 -0800
    Re: strncpy and 'n' Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2012-02-16 11:10 -0800
      Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-16 14:20 -0800
        Re: strncpy and 'n' Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2012-02-17 04:19 -0800
          Re: strncpy and 'n' James Kuyper <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2012-02-17 10:04 -0500
            Re: strncpy and 'n' Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2012-02-17 10:27 -0800
            Re: strncpy and 'n' Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2012-02-17 11:22 -0800
              Re: strncpy and 'n' James Kuyper <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2012-02-17 14:40 -0500
                Re: strncpy and 'n' Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2012-02-18 02:17 -0800
    Re: strncpy and 'n' jgk@panix.com (Joe keane) - 2012-02-19 20:04 +0000
      Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-19 12:33 -0800
        Re: strncpy and 'n' jgk@panix.com (Joe keane) - 2012-02-20 21:25 +0000
          Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-20 14:46 -0800
            Re: strncpy and 'n' Jorgen Grahn <grahn+nntp@snipabacken.se> - 2012-02-23 23:13 +0000
              Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-23 16:20 -0800
              Re: strncpy and 'n' Philip Lantz <prl@canterey.us> - 2012-02-25 00:26 -0800
              Re: strncpy and 'n' pacman@kosh.dhis.org (Alan Curry) - 2012-02-26 01:34 +0000
                Re: strncpy and 'n' Jorgen Grahn <grahn+nntp@snipabacken.se> - 2012-02-28 22:46 +0000
                Re: strncpy and 'n' jgk@panix.com (Joe keane) - 2012-03-01 00:03 +0000
                Re: strncpy and 'n' Jorgen Grahn <grahn+nntp@snipabacken.se> - 2012-03-01 12:03 +0000
          Re: strncpy and 'n' James Kuyper <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2012-02-20 17:51 -0500
        Re: strncpy and 'n' Shao Miller <sha0.miller@gmail.com> - 2012-02-20 18:14 -0500
          Re: strncpy and 'n' pete <pfiland@mindspring.com> - 2012-02-20 23:16 -0500
            Re: strncpy and 'n' Shao Miller <sha0.miller@gmail.com> - 2012-02-25 01:51 -0500
              Re: strncpy and 'n' pete <pfiland@mindspring.com> - 2012-02-25 10:34 -0500
        Re: strncpy and 'n' Rich Webb <bbew.ar@mapson.nozirev.ten> - 2012-02-20 19:09 -0500
          Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-20 16:46 -0800
            Re: strncpy and 'n' Rich Webb <bbew.ar@mapson.nozirev.ten> - 2012-02-20 20:48 -0500
          Re: strncpy and 'n' Shao Miller <sha0.miller@gmail.com> - 2012-02-20 19:46 -0500
        Re: strncpy and 'n' jgk@panix.com (Joe keane) - 2012-02-21 21:46 +0000
          Re: strncpy and 'n' James Kuyper <jameskuyper@verizon.net> - 2012-02-21 17:15 -0500
          Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-21 14:29 -0800
            Re: strncpy and 'n' Malcolm McLean <malcolm.mclean5@btinternet.com> - 2012-02-22 01:15 -0800
            Re: strncpy and 'n' jgk@panix.com (Joe keane) - 2012-02-23 00:02 +0000
              Re: strncpy and 'n' Keith Thompson <kst-u@mib.org> - 2012-02-22 17:02 -0800
  Re: strncpy and 'n' Markus Schaub <usenet@markus-schaub.de> - 2012-02-16 18:53 +0000
  Re: strncpy and 'n' lawrence.jones@siemens.com - 2012-02-16 13:25 -0500
  Re: strncpy and 'n' blp@cs.stanford.edu (Ben Pfaff) - 2012-02-16 11:18 -0800
  Re: strncpy and 'n' Stephen Sprunk <stephen@sprunk.org> - 2012-02-16 13:29 -0600
    Re: strncpy and 'n' Ike Naar <ike@iceland.freeshell.org> - 2012-02-16 22:45 +0000
  Re: strncpy and 'n' ImpalerCore <jadill33@gmail.com> - 2012-02-16 11:32 -0800
  Re: strncpy and 'n' Nick Keighley <nick_keighley_nospam@hotmail.com> - 2012-02-17 00:50 -0800

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